On March 9, 2013, President Monaco attended the 37th annual Region IV Science Fair at Somerville High School . The Region IV Fair covers much of northeastern Massachusetts, including Tufts University’s host communities of Medford and Somerville. The fair brings together more than 200 high school science students who have already won their local competitions in Medford, Somerville, Cambridge, Lexington, Belmont and other nearby communities.

Tufts has been a sponsor for several years, helping to defray Somerville’s costs for hosting the fair and sending our faculty and graduate students to serve as judges. President Monaco has enjoyed attending the fair, talking with high school students and their parents and sharing his journey to becoming a distinguished geneticist.

This year, Chemistry Senior Lecturer Sergiy Kryatov and Physics and Astronomy Professor/Interim Chair William Oliver served as judges along with graduate students from the education, biomedical engineering and biology departments.

In 2012, Tufts first offered a $250 prize to the highest scoring Somerville or Medford scientist. President Monaco was on hand to present this year’s award to Nicole Gouveia of Somerville High School for her research on Kefir Fermentation. Last year’s winner of the Tufts prize, Erica Budina from Medford High School, was the top winner in this year’s fair.

President Anthony Monaco presents the Tufts Prize to Nicole Gouveia of Somerville.(Emily Zilm for Tufts University)